With the month of February comes a variety of big celebrations such as the Super Bowl, Black History month and, of course, Valentine’s Day. Even if you have a valentine you can still show yourself some love too, right? Here are a few things the fitness chick can do to show herself love for Valentine’s Day:

Inspire Yourself- If you are feeling down and need some inspiration, purchase a new book. There are hundreds of books that will inspire you about whatever journey you are on. A great, quick read is Runner’s Revelations: How Running Changed My Walk by Monisha Randolph. You will surely be inspired as Ms. Randolph takes you on her funny, moving and triumphant journey through training for her first marathon.

Celebrate Uniquely- Instead of the normal girl’s night out, try something fun that will expand your knowledge at the same time such as a cooking lesson, a dance class, painting, etc. This month, Sporty Afros is hosting February Fabulousness, where we will have a discussion about fitness, style, nutrition, hair care over cocktails. It will be fun and informative. Check out SportyAfros.com for more details.

Spruce Up Your Hair- A new doo always makes a girl feel better! Do you normally wear your hair straight? Try experimenting with curly half wigs or a roller set for new look you are sure to love. If you normally wear your hair curly, try straightening it out or try a straight wig for a sleek new look.

Splurge on Gear- For you all who are still keeping your fitness new years’ resolutions, what better way to spoil yourself than with new workout gear and gym bag essentials?! Here are few of our favorite finds that we love: Under Armor sports bras, any Nike leggings and/or workout pants, Brook’s performance shirts, Burt’s Bees moisturizing lip balm, iPod and Adidas duffel bags. With these items, you will be able to step up your workout routine. Your entire body will thank you too.

New Workout Class – Bored with your usual workout routine already? Try a new workout class/routine to switch it up. Some of our favorites are hot yoga, zumba, belly dancing, rock climbing, hip hop dance; the list goes on and on. Check your local area to see what fun classes are happening.

Remember, Valentine’s Day is not only for giving and receiving gifts but showing yourself some love too!

Whitney Patterson and Alexandria Williams are two triathletes who startedSportyAfros.com after constantly being asked how they maintained their curly/coily hair while sticking to a consistent workout routine. Sporty Afros is the first site to connect the dots between hair care, exercise and nutrition.

For those of you who, like me, did not live through the so-called “Civil Rights Era,” there is a real risk that the Civil Rights Movement has become reduced to a mere history lesson — a phenomenon relegated to a distinct period of time that had an identifiable start and end, and that we study in school and hear about on nights like tonight and during Black History Month, but then largely forget until the following year.

I am afraid that for many of us, the Civil Rights Movement and many of its most recognized leaders, including the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., have become the grainy black and white photographs that we are so used to seeing in the history books or in that lovely documentary “Eyes on the Prize.”

If you go online and visit Wikipedia.org (which if you don’t know, is to kids today what the Encyclopedia Britannica was to many of us growing up), you will find the following definition of the civil rights movement: “The African-American Civil Rights Movement . . . refers to the movements in the United States aimed at outlawing racial discrimination against African Americans and restoring voting rights to them. ”

The short definition I just read is quite telling, if you break it down: The first thing you will notice is that it refers to “movements,” plural, within the definition of “Civil Rights Movement.” And this is as is should be, because the so-called “Civil Rights Era” (which is how we commonly refer to that period between 1955 and 1968 when you saw most of the boycotts, sit-ins, and marches for which the Civil Rights Movement is now known to most people) does not represent the beginning or the end of the Civil Rights Movement.

The “Civil Rights Era” reflects only the beginning and the end of one phase of the broader Civil Rights Movement: the “mass action” phase. And the reality is, the mass action phase of the Civil Rights Movement, which was characterized by the major campaigns of civil resistance that we have come to associate with the Civil Rights Movement such as boycotts, sit-ins, and marches was actually the third phase of the Civil Rights Movement.

You see, the Civil Rights Movement began long before the 1960s. It began the day the first African was brought to the United States of America as a slave, for as soon as slavery was introduced into this country, the Civil Rights Movement had begun, except we called it “abolitionism” and we called our leaders “abolitionists.” Do you remember Frederick Douglass, Sojourner Truth, and Harriet Tubman? We don’t talk about them much when we discuss the Civil Rights Movement because we’ve confused Phase 3 of the Civil Rights Movement, the mass action phase, with the entire movement, and we’ve forgotten these people. Remember them!

They are an important part of the Civil Rights Movement and we need to remember what they were able to accomplish and how they accomplished it. They defeated slavery itself, and they did it through a variety of means. We could learn a lot from studying those means, but first we have to remember that this phase of the Civil Rights Movement ever occurred!

There was a second phase of the Civil Rights Movement, which is also often forgotten. It began after Reconstruction and ended when the “mass action” phase of the Civil Rights Movement began. It arose in direct response to the fact that although the South had been defeated in the Civil War and the US Constitution had been amended to give black people the right to vote and enjoy the rights of citizenship equal to their white brothers, the reality was that black people were far from equal anywhere in the country, and that in the South, blacks had been forced back into conditions that were almost as bad as slavery under what came to be known as Jim Crow.

The Jim Crow period was characterized by racial segregation, disfranchisement of black citizens, economic exploitation of black workers and farmers, and violence against blacks of all ages. During this horrible period, which many historians have described as the low point in American race relations, the Civil Rights Movement evolved into its second phase: the organizational and legal phase. It was during this phase that we started organizations like the NAACP, which was founded in 1909, and we earned legal victories in cases like Brown v. Board of Education in 1954, which overturned “separate but equal.” Do you remember Charles Hamilton Houston and Thurgood Marshall?

We don’t talk about them much when we discuss the Civil Rights Movement either because, again, we’ve confused the so-called Civil Rights Era, with the entire movement, and we’ve forgotten these folks, too! Remember them! These geniuses (and that is what they were) defeated segregation itself. We could learn a lot from these civil rights heroes, but again, we first have to remember that this phase of the Civil Rights Movement even occurred!

Of course, we also cannot forget the third phase of the Civil Rights Movement — the “mass action” phase or the so-called Civil Rights Era — because it was during this phase of the Civil Rights Movement that we earned so many hard-fought and seemingly impossible victories: the Montgomery Bus Boycott of 1955-56, which lasted an incredible 381 days and involved 90% of the black folk living in Montgomery; the 1963 March on Washington which led to the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964; or the 1965 Selma to Montgomery Marches which led to the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

We should remember and celebrate all of the victories that occurred during the “mass action” phase of the Civil Rights Movement, and all of the people who were instrumental in delivering us those victories: people like Dr. King, Rosa Parks, and Congressman John Lewis. And we should remember and celebrate all of the victories mentioned earlier — our victories over slavery and Jim Crow — to remind ourselves of what we are capable of accomplishing when we determine that there is a need for a new phase of the Civil Rights Movement.

Ladies and gentlemen, it is time for us to act again. I think it is time for us to move into the next phase of the Civil Rights Movement. As a person who has been placed in a position of trust and responsibility within our community, it is my duty to sound the alarm when there is a threat at the door, and not to “cry wolf” or sound the alarm when there is no genuine threat merely to score cheap political points or to pander. So, here is what I say: The next phase of the Civil Rights Movement needs to be about justice: educational justice, economic justice, and criminal justice.

I say this because I have a front row seat to what’s going on in our political system, and things are about to break one way or the other. We are either going to have real education reform that gives poor black children the same opportunities to receive a quality, 21st century appropriate education as their wealthier white counterparts, or black people are going to become, literally, the least employable people on the entire planet —Yes, the entire planet.

The reason? If we stay on our current path, we as black people won’t be able to compete for the high skilled jobs that the US is increasingly specializing in and there won’t be many low-skilled jobs left to compete for since these jobs are increasingly being outsourced overseas. And the few low skilled jobs that remain will be end up being filled by over-qualified college graduates since college degrees are becoming increasingly common. If you don’t believe me, maybe you’ll believe President Obama. He himself has said that “education is the civil rights issue of our time.” I couldn’t agree more. Education is key.

In addition to educational justice, we must also demand economic justice. What are we thinking as black people, sitting and watching college kids use the very tools we showcased to the world during the Civil Rights Era to fight for economic justice without our help and support? Shame on us! Are things going so well for us that we don’t see ourselves as part of the 99% that the Occupy Movement is fighting for? Is our unemployment rate not high enough compared to whites for us to protest? Are the interest rates we are being charged by payday lenders not high enough for us to protest?

Are the mortgage interest rates that some banks charge us not high enough compared to what they charge white customers with the same credit scores for us to protest? Are there so many blacks in upper management at the law firm, accounting firm, or company where you work that you wouldn’t dare protest or even show support to those who are protesting? We better remember how we got to where we are and understand that the minute we lose sight of the collective “we” that go us through the third phase of the Civil Rights Movement, we are doomed.

Blacks make up nearly 12 percent of the people in the State of Texas, yet we make up nearly 45 percent of the inmates in this state — that is simply unacceptable. Discrimination is present on every level of the criminal justice system, from racial profiling on our streets by the police we pay for, to the criminal courts themselves, all the way to presidential pardons where whites are four times more likely to be pardoned than blacks.

From 1980 to 2000, for every four black men who went to prison, only one went to college. Over that same period, Texas’ prison spending outpaced its higher education spending by seven times. It’s time we do something about this. It is time to educate ourselves. It’s time for us to demand real criminal justice reform. Even Ron Paul, with whom I rarely agree, agrees that the War on Drugs failed and that black people are far more likely to see the inside of a jail cell than whites or any other group for committing the exact same crimes, particularly when it comes to drug crimes!

In his Letter From a Birmingham Jail, Dr. King spoke of direct action and he spoke of the need for creating “tension.” “Tension,” Dr. King said, “is the only way to compel action, the only way to overcome the many forces attempting to maintain the status quo.” As Black people, we simply cannot afford to be as complacent as we’ve become since the last phase of the Civil Rights Movement!

We must again become actors, and we must create the tension that will topple those oppressive forces that remain within our society and within our political system. How do I know that this tension will be sufficient to topple these forces? Remember Phases 1, 2, and 3 of the Civil Rights Movement? Our track record is pretty darn good.

Last year, very important legislation was passed which impacted the operation of payday and auto title lenders in Dallas and throughout our state. If you or anyone you know is in financial difficulty and considering a short term loan, these laws protect your rights as a consumer.

During last year’s state legislative session, the Anti-Poverty Coalition of Greater Dallas (including, CitySquare, Friendship West Baptist Church, the United Way of Greater Dallas, the Jewish Community Relations Council, Catholic Charities, along with a number of other non-profit agencies and service providers) joined the Christian Life Commission, Texas Appleseed, Texas Catholic Charities and 500% Interest is Wrong, urging Texas lawmakers to address the exploitative practices of short term lenders.

Payday and auto title loan outfits create a cycle of debt by charging high fees which mask interest rates which can be upwards of 500% APR. With short terms and no partial payments, borrowers often must borrow again at 500% APR in attempts to pay off the loan. The average payday borrower in Texas pays $840 for a $300 loan.

This state-wide collaboration was successful in getting two bills passed which place new restrictions on Credit Service Organizations (most payday and auto title lenders in Texas are registered as CSOs and will be impacted by this legislation). CSOs are now required to:

•       Register with the Office of Consumer Credit Commissioner, and the licensing fee will fund the Texas Financial Education Endowment
•       Report on consumer and transaction data
•       Clearly disclose fees, typical repayment patterns, and fees of comparable loans
•       Post an OCCC helpline number for consumers
•       Provide restitution to customers injured by a violation of CSO regulation or Finance Code

Locally, the Anti-Poverty Coalition prevailed in their efforts to get Dallas’ City Council to take action against predatory lenders. On May 25, 2011, the Dallas City Council unanimously passed a zoning ordinance requiring alternative financial institutions to:

•       Operate at a minimum distance of 1,500 feet from another location
•       Operate at a minimum distance of 300 feet from a lot in a residential district
•       Operate at a minimum distance of 500 feet from an expressway
•       Only operate in a freestanding building
•       Possess a Specific Use Permit (SUP) in all permitted districts

On June 22, 2011, the Dallas City Council unanimously passed a regulatory ordinance requiring:

•       The loan principal for a payday loan to be capped at 20 percent of the borrower’s gross monthly income, and auto-title loans are capped at 3 percent of the borrower’s gross annual income
•       Limits payments to four installment loans with no renewals, or a single payment loan with three renewals or rollovers
•       Each installment or renewal payment pay down 25% of the loan principal

These ordinances took effect January 1.

Predatory short term lending drains wealth out of our communities and hamper economic development. More and more, cities are increasingly concerned that payday and auto title loan outfits depress property values, become magnets for crime and give our communities a look of economic decline.

The economic health of our families and our community is dependent upon being smart about the nature of the businesses that court our patronage. The exploitation of those in financially desperate circumstances is best combated with financial education and the public engagement necessary to make certain these businesses operate with integrity.

The Rev. Gerald Britt Jr. is vice president of public policy at CitySquare.org. Rev. Britt blogs at changethewind.org.  and writes a monthly column for the Dallas Morning News. His e-mail address is gbritt@citysquare.

Public hearings have been held by the Dallas Independent School District to discuss their recommendation to “consolidate” 11 middle and elementary school campuses.   I need to get one thing out of the way. These campuses are being considered for closing.  I refuse to use the word consolidation.

Is it any surprise that all of the campuses under consideration are located in some of the more underserved zip codes in Dallas County?

Am I being paranoid in thinking that this is a part of some larger gentrification strategy? The ripple effect of closing neighborhood schools is far reaching.  All of the schools being considered for closing are in declining neighborhoods.  Close the neighborhood schools  and you are issuing a death sentence for these communities.

Already low home values will plummet even more and any hope of economic development can be put to rest.  Additionally, the unappealing aesthetic effect of large, empty structures sitting abandoned and becoming a nest for criminal activity will be devastating to the psyche of these communities.

It’s not unreasonable to expect mass exodus as residents seek neighborhoods that have a school in close proximity.  Which brings me back to my question regarding gentrification.  Would closing schools be a strategy to “cleanse” a neighborhood?

Several of these schools are located in areas that are currently undergoing drastic changes in demographics.   Would closing these campuses help to speed up the process? Citizens need to show up in large numbers and demand that DISD Trustees exhaust every possible alternative to closing schools.

Trustee Bernadette Nutall told the Dallas Observer that she has discussed with Mayor Mike Rawlings ways to bring “affordable housing to South Dallas, because economics and education go hand in hand.”  Amen Ms. Nutall!  That’s an example of the mindset Trustees need to adopt. Closing schools and firing teachers should never be an option for dealing with school district budget issues……unless there’s another strategy in play.

Michael Hubbard is a freelance writer and blogger.  A native of Dallas, TX, he is a proud graduate of James Madison High School.  Michael brings a unique, hometown perspective to his political and social commentary.  You can follow his opinions at mikeondallas.blogspot.com, and Mike can be reached at Mhubbard23@aol.com

The recent stories regarding the Columbia Packing Co. meat packing plant are shocking and disgusting. In case you’ve been living under a rock, here is a brief rundown from a WFAA story:

In court documents, an investigator says that on Dec. 15, 2011, he heard swine cries that appeared to be coming from Columbia Packing. A few minutes later, the water volume increased and the water turned blood red.

Investigators say the company allegedly used a sewer pipe to dump the blood. Water tests later showed swine’s blood and toxins in the water. Friday morning, the company had a sewer cleaning company on the property.

According to the Dallas Morning News, investigators found:

waste products, byproducts, blood, contaminants and other toxic substances resulting from animal processing and cleaning up after said processing.

Even Drudge Report had picked up the story by Saturday morning.  It seems obvious to everyone at this point that we have an environmental disaster on our hands and how we react to it will give us tremendous insight into our attitude towards the Trinity River and Southern Dallas.

As the Google Maps satellite image shows, this plant is located roughly 1,000 feet from the over $4 million dollar standing wave and the recently installed trails. You can actually see the blood entering the Trinity on the labeled Google Maps screenshot below:

So as far as the health of our water supply, our only true natural resource, the surrounding neighborhoods and the millions we have invested in trails and parks is concerned – this plant is no longer compatible with its surroundings and should be shut down.

Please keep in mind when I say “shut down” I mean that whatever permits they have should be revoked as a result of their conduct and whatever nonconforming zoning rights they have should be amortized immediately. Regardless of their alleged dumping, this type of land use no longer belongs next to homes, a river and parks, the dumping just makes it an easier pill to swallow.

Now on to the Southern Dallas issue, I am sure we will hear all kinds of sabre rattling regarding the jobs this plant provides, the economic impact, and fears of being anti-business. I’ll let the Dallas Morning New Editorial Board address those concerns as they are shockingly similar to the Frisco Exide plant issue in which they eloquently stated:

It is never easy for a city to balance economic development and public health when the two goals come into conflict. To their credit, Frisco city officials have appropriately done so in the Exide case, giving the priority to public health.

Indeed, cities clearly should be careful about pushing out businesses they don’t like. Companies make economic investments in cities with the expectation that they will remain in operation. The plant employs about 135 workers and pays taxes to Collin County and the Frisco Independent School District. Its economic impact is not insignificant…

Frisco’s City Council made the right call to stand up for the environmental health of its residents. That’s what elected officials are supposed to do.

So let’s rally the animal lovers that were so vocal regarding the animal shelter, call up the enviromentalists that want stricter tree ordinances, and most of all let’s hear some outrage from the big names that have sponsored the Trinity River project for all these years.

The answer seems pretty simple to me, the ball is in your court Dallas.

Robert Abtahi is a Dallas attorney that represents individuals and small businesses. He is also a current member of the Dallas City Plan Commission.  He can be reached at Robert.Abtahi@gmail.com.

It is my prayer that the love of Christ fills your heart and everyday you find a new reason to be grateful for the mercies and graciousness that has been bestowed on us.  To all unbelievers, everywhere, I greet you with love and my prayer is for you as well.  Now that we’ve gotten the niceties out of the way, Christians, we have a problem.

I have come to the inescapable conclusion based on numerous conversations and Facebook© discussions that many of us are mentally limiting God.

I have seen believers state with complete sincerity and reasonableness that God does not help Tim Tebow because God does not care about football.  God does not have a preference for players or teams.  That would be unfair.  God has absolutely nothing to do with football.

God is in charge of everything.  Let’s start with the easy stuff.  We are urged in Psalm 103 by King David to bless the Lord and not to forget all of his benefits.  In case you’ve forgotten, David lists them from verse three to twenty-two.

He forgiveth all our iniquities, healeth our diseases, redeems our lives from destruction, and crowns us with lovingkindness (yes, all one word!) and tendermercies.  He satisfies our mouths with good things, executes righteousness and judgment for all that are oppressed.  He made himself known to mankind, is merciful and gracious and slow to anger, plenteous in mercy.

Now, that’s just to verse eight!  What does it mean?  Well, he forgives ALL our sins.  Yeah, how many people have YOU forgiven?  If you can remember all the people you have forgiven, then you haven’t forgiven that many.  Multiply that worldwide since time began.  That’s a lot of sin.

He heals our diseases.  Yes, some people do die from disease, but I want to you to ask yourself when the last time was someone you knew was diagnosed with polio.  How about measles?

I know of an infant who had heart surgery before reaching six months.  He’s strong as an ox now.  So, yeah, God is all about healing diseases, whether through the miracle of modern medicine or supernaturally.  He’s a healer.

He redeems our lives from destruction.  So, know any alcoholics or drug addicts in recovery?  I know a few.  Some of them are 20+ years sober.  What about any people who have survived some rough spots in their marriages?  I am sure we know some folks who are still together against ALL odds.  Not just together, but together and loving one another, flaws and all after devastating personal choices that almost destroyed their families.  That’s God.  Redeeming.

He is lovingly kind to us and crowns us with tender mercies.  How many of you survived one, two, three rounds of layoffs at your job?  How many of us are still working right now and know more than three people who are not?  That is some loving kindness and tender mercy.

He satisfies our mouths with good things – come on, how much weight did you gain between November and January?  He executes righteousness and judgment for all that are oppressed.  Have you been watching the news?  There are a lot of interesting developments all over the world in nations of every type.  Are you paying attention?  Oppressed people get tired and then they rise up. #IJS

He has made himself known to us, first through Moses and the children of Israel and now through apps.  We can download the Holy Bible in a variety of translations right to our smart phones.  We can get free scriptures and spiritual music online.  We can watch church on TV, Ipads™, mobile phones, listen to it on the radio, buy compact discs or go to Half Price Books™ and buy classic sermons.

The God of Psalms 104 who covers Himself in light, makes the clouds His chariot, walks on the wings of the wind and laid the foundations of the Earth and whose voice is as thunder is the Creator and Ruler of all things.  He sends springs into the valleys, which run among hills and give drink to every beast of the field.

By these same waters the fowls of heaven have their habitation and sing among the branches.  Grass grows and feeds the cattle and herbs grow to feed us and wine comes from the vine to make our hearts joyful and oil makes our faces shine and bread strengthens our hearts.

The moon is appointed for seasons; the sun knows when to go down.  In the darkness He made, beasts of the forest creep forth.  Young lions roar after their prey and get their meat from God!  The sun rises and the lions lay down in their dens.  Then Man goes forth unto his work to labor until the evening.

This is just to verse 25!  There are ten more to go!  God runs everything.  Football and Tim Tebow’s arm are nothing to Him!  He’s already created galaxies and the universe, man and beast, time, light and countless cycles by which the Earth runs.  Football is for fun!  Do you think we are having fun on this Earth He created outside of His will and dominion?

Does God care about football?  Does God care if Tim Tebow wins?  Hello!  God CREATED football, the grass they run, throw, catch and tackle upon, the cow that died so there would be leather for the ball and he CREATED the players and GIFTED them with their talent.  He INSPIRED the coaches so they could create plays.  He BLESSED team owners so they could afford to own stadiums, and employ all the coaches, players, and personnel it takes to fill them.  He PLANNED ALL of this.

So yes, for whatever reason, God did something awe inspiring with Tim Tebow.  Yes, He cares if Tebow wins.  I do know this; a whole lot of people are asking themselves, “Is God really blessing the Denver Broncos?”  To me, this leads them quite naturally to wonder if God will really bless them, because somewhere along the way I think we got confused.  I think we believe God is only concerned about important stuff.  *MIC CHECK* YOU ARE THE IMPORTANT STUFF.

Don’t worry about, “Why Tebow?”  The better question is, “Why not, YOU?”  There is greatness in you.  It may not be athletic.  It may not make billions, entertain millions, employ hundreds of thousands or result in a trophy.  There is greatness in you.  Tim Tebow knows it’s in Him.  Do you?

Nature Sargent is a graduate of Skyline High School, and currently teaches in the Dallas Independent School District.   She holds a bachelor’s degree in Family Studies and an EC-4 certification with the State of Texas.

This will be the first year that the STAAR (State of Texas Assessment of Academic Readiness) Test will be given to students throughout Texas. It will be more challenging than the TAKS (Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills) or the TAAS (Texas Assessment of Academic Skills) has been in the past.

The STAAR test will require students to think more about how to find the answer than just getting the answer right. This will require a different set of skills. No one knows what will be included in the test itself, only the skills or TEKS (Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills) are provided, and the test is based on those TEKS.

Now that you have been alphabetted to death (had to give you some background info, sorry) let’s get to the point: Why was there a need for another test and who will be affected by it? Glad you asked! Isn’t it funny that once students of color seem to get the hang of this standardized test thing, along comes something bigger and better? Is it me or does it seem like a vicious cycle of “Raise the Bar?”

As an educator, there are two terms you should become familiar with if you have school-aged children or plan to have them in the near future: met expectations and commended. “Met expectations” is what we refer to when we say someone “passed” the TAKS test. “Commended” is the rating a student gets when he or she scores more than 85% mastery on one or more parts of the TAKS test. Why are these terms important? Because if you were satisfied as a parent with your child “passing TAKS” – you ain’t seen nothing yet!  With STAAR, what was once considered “commended” is now passing the test! That’s right; the bar has been raised to new heights!

Now, you may be wondering why they are raising the bar so high in such a short period of time. Well, there is some good news and some bad news. The good news: Your child’s school will not be rated this year on how they do on the STAAR Test. In other words, schools and school districts will be allowed to use this year as a measurement of how well their students perform.

The bad news: With the new tests, at the high school level, students will have to take four separate EOC (End of Course) exams and score and average at least 70 to graduate! That’s right, the bar has been raised to a new level to determine if your child will graduate high school or not.

These decisions were not made in a vacuum. It has been a five-year process to phase in this new exam. Yep, five years! So I leave you with this question: If it’s been five years to phase in the STAAR Test, why are you just now hearing about it? I suggest you start that conversation with your local state representative. I’m just the messenger!

Casey Thomas is the immediate past President of the Dallas NAACP and an educator at Nova Academy. He can be reached at caseyt07@sbcglobal.net.

Imagine you and your family are sound asleep when a fire breaks out in the kitchen. The dense, heavy smoke drifts slowly upward and into the fire alarm and then – silence. Unfortunately, your residence is equipped with faulty alarms that only emit a flashing light. The perilous, life-choking cloud of smoke continues to slowly engulf your home; though lights are flashing in every room, the risk of you and your loved ones not making it out is all too real.

This situation is unnervingly similar to the K-12 public education crisis facing this country. Your family comfortably asleep represents America. The smoke symbolizes America’s approaching threat – millions of students graduating ill prepared for college, ill prepared for life. The silent alarm signifies our inability to collectively recognize the problem. The flashing light is our hope, our opportunity to save ourselves, but only if we wake up and see the light.

How did this crisis in education happen? How could we have gone to sleep so unprepared? These are difficult, perhaps impossible questions to answer. However, I’d like to suggest a few reasons why we are particularly tranquil here in Texas. First, large swaths of parents across the state are impressed with empty labels like “exemplary” and “recognized.” Too few ask the simple, but relevant question – my child’s school is exemplary or recognized compared to what standard?

Compared to other states, the only thing we’re recognized for is being close to the bottom when it comes to education. In 2008, Texas was dead last in the nation for percentage of adults with a high school diploma (Brookings Institute). In 2011, Texas students SAT scores ranked 47th in the nation, indicating that they are among the least ready for college in the country (College Board).

Despite scores of recognized and exemplary public schools dotting the Texas landscape; our ranking in education is anything but exemplary. To be fair, the Texas Education Agency (TEA) and the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB) have collaborated to replace the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) with what is being described as a more rigorous State of Texas Assessment for Academic Readiness (STAAR). Increasing rigor with STAAR is certainly a good step in the right direction.

Unfortunately, our current situation will require more than a good step; we need outstanding leaps in the right direction. Furthermore, we need to leap with a sense of urgency because Texas may have a very desolate future.

Our student population of 4.93 million students for the 2010-11 school year was 63% minority (Latino and African-American) and 59.1% economically disadvantaged (TEA). Why are these statistics relevant? They are relevant because students in these demographics (a clear majority of Texas students) have been historically the most at-risk for low academic achievement. According to Teachers College – Columbia University:

• By the end of fourth grade, African American, Latino, and poor students of all races are two years behind their wealthier, predominantly Caucasian peers in reading and math.
• By the end of high school, African American and Hispanic students’ reading and mathematics skills are roughly the same as those of Caucasian students in the eighth grade
• African American students are only about half as likely (and Hispanics about one-third as likely) as Caucasian students to earn a bachelor’s degree by age 29.

Academic achievement for Caucasian students is not quite as alarming, however, it is certainly no source of state pride; we are all in this together. Still, there’s hope; we can make a difference both collectively and individually.

As individuals, we can educate ourselves on issues of education reform and hold the leadership at our local schools accountable. If you are a parent, you can research and understand all your options which include traditional public schools, public charter, private and magnet schools. Enroll your child in one of Dallas’ high performing schools, whatever their label, and hold them accountable. At a minimum, you can volunteer or mentor a student in need.

Collectively, we can advocate for education reform by organizing parents and community leaders to write to and meet with local, state and nationally elected officials. Once we have their attention, we can press for the changes needed in education. In short, we can care enough to take action.

I care because I came from the aforementioned demographics, as a K-12 student I was economically disadvantaged and black. Some 20 years ago, it was my house that was on fire and I was the only one to make it out to safety and get a solid education. My older siblings didn’t make it, and though I desperately wanted to save them, I was powerless.

Over the years, each of my siblings became victims to the circumstances of their day. The harsh smoke choked the life out of any chance they had, at the kind of opportunities my education allowed me to take for granted. Catastrophes like this continue to unfold across the nation and the situation gets progressively worse with time.

As an adult, I’m no longer powerless; I can help, and so can you. Texans, I can’t be any clearer than this, our collective house is burning, the deadly smoke is still approaching, and now you’ve seen the flashing light. The only question is, will you take action, or roll over and go back to sleep.

Johnny Deas is the Chief Operating Officer for Uplift Education. Learn more about our high performing free public schools at uplifteducation.org.

Wade Emmert

Families in America are under attack and it is killing our society.  It is hurting our economy, straining our educational system, and threatening our very way of life.

I’m reminded of the children’s song from Sunday school about the foolish man building his house on the sand.  When the rains came down and the floods came up, the foolish man’s house went “splat.”  Why?  Because it was not built on a good foundation like the house built on solid rock by the wise man.

By way of analogy, the family unit is the building block of our society.  If we try to build our society on something else, it will not withstand the inevitable storms.  Take away the solid rock that families provide and many parts of our society start to crumble.

The Republican Party of Texas recognizes the role strong families play in our society.  In fact, it is the very first guiding principle in the Texas GOP platform:

We support:

Strong Families – Families intent on giving their children the hope of a better tomorrow, the promise of a safe and secure today, and an appreciation and respect of yesterday.

It’s not hard to understand why the family is so important.

Statistics showing the breakdown of the family and its devastating effects are easy to come by.  For this article, my primary source is ChildStats.gov, a website run by the Federal Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics, a collection of 22 Federal government agencies involved in research and activities related to children and families.[1]

Their numbers on the breakdown of the family are compelling.  In 2010, only 66 percent of children ages 0-17 lived with two married parents.  That is down from 77 percent in 1980.  When broken out based on ethnicities, 75 percent of White, 61 percent of Hispanic, and 35 percent of Black children lived with two married parents in 2010.[2]

Part of the problem is that more children are born outside of wedlock, so the traditional family unit never has a chance.[3]  In 2009, 41 percent of all births were to unmarried women.[4]  In 1980, that rate was only 18 percent.

The lack of a stable family unit results in more children living in poverty and not having needed resources to thrive.  Children of unmarried mothers are more likely to live in poverty than children of married mothers[5] and they are at greater risk for adverse consequences because the social, emotional, and financial resources available to the family may be limited.[6]  This affects their educational prospects and earning opportunities.[7]

Locally, these numbers are even more disturbing.  In Texas, single-parent families increased from 31% in 2000 to 34% in 2010.  In Dallas County, these numbers have increased every decade since 1990.[8]

The point of this article is not provide a preachy solution or to imply that Republicans are immune from the trend of single-parent families.  I know first hand that is not true.  I am the result of a single-parent family.

Neither am I trying to say exactly what the family unit should look like.  No, the point of this article is to recognize a problem exits regardless of political party and ethnicity and that it affects all of us.  This is a shared-problem with shared-implications.

The call for stronger families is not just an platitude that sounds good at political rallies.    Rather, it is an essential part of who we are as a country.  Families define us and empower us.  To put a point on it: when families suffer, America suffers.

Looking at the elements in the Republican principle, we see that families provide our children at least three very important things:

1. Give children hope of a better tomorrow;

2. Keep children safe and secure; and

3. Instill within children an appreciation and respect of yesterday.

The promise of hope for a better tomorrow is not intended to extend to only a select few.  The promise is a hope for all through better education, better opportunities for economic growth and better opportunities for personal achievement.

Better educational opportunities give children the tools they will need to grow up, mature and provide for themselves and their families.  Real hope, though, comes from opportunities to succeed.

Whether they want to be school teachers, lawyers, pastors or entrepreneurs, our children deserve an opportunity to make something of themselves.  They deserve a chance to be who they want to be, not merely default to a life because they have no other choice.

Families also keep children safe and secure.  Safety comes through the protection and provision of loving parents who look out for their children’s best interests and nurture them into adulthood.  Security comes by giving children the means of providing for themselves.

Education is a good example.  An educated person can provide for himself or herself rather than relying on the government or charity.  That kind of security is perhaps the greatest gift our generation can provide to the next.

The goal of instilling within our children an appreciation and respect of yesterday is a call to instill within them patriotism and pride in America.  Never forget where we came from, whether it be our low moments or our greatest achievements.  We are all bound together through our history.  Its not all good history, but it is our history.  Either way, it is the fabric of our society and we need to know it.

Knowing the disastrous effects of struggling families is not the same thing as finding a solution.  We must start with an acknowledgement of the problem if we ever hope to find a solution.

A long term solution, however, will necessarily involve reclaiming our traditional American values, especially those that support the family unit.  The family unit is the building block of our society.  Take away that cornerstone and, just like the house of the foolish man, our society will go “splat.”

[1] http://www.childstats.gov/forum/ “About the Forum”

[2] http://www.childstats.gov/americaschildren/famsoc1.asp “Family Structure & Child Living Arrangements”

[3] National Center for Health Statistics. (1995). Report to Congress on out-of-wedlock childbearing. Hyattsville, MD: Author.

[4] Hamilton, B.E., Martin, J.A., and Ventura, S.J. (2010). Births: Preliminary data for 2009. National Vital Statistics Reports, 59(3). Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics.

[5] McLanahan, S. (1995). The consequences of nonmarital childbearing for women, children, and society. In National Center for Health Statistics, Report to Congress on out-of-wedlock childbearing. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics.

[6] McLanahan, S. (1995). The consequences of nonmarital childbearing for women, children, and society. In National Center for Health Statistics, Report to Congress on out-of-wedlock childbearing. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics.

[7] Strohschein, L. (2005, December). Household income histories and child mental health trajectories. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 46(4), 359–357.

[8] http://kidscount.org “Kids County Data Center”

Wade Emmert is Chairman of the Dallas County Republican Party and former memberof the Cedar Hill City Council.

In 2012, residents of Dallas County will have the opportunity to break free from the status quo. If the moment is seized voters could trigger historic changes that would resonate throughout the state.

Will citizens of Southern Dallas be content with business as usual or will they help facilitate a changing of the guard that many believe is long overdue?

The most anticipated races in recent memory involve two of the most recognizable political figures in Texas: Dallas County Commissioner John Wiley Price and Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson.  Both have been entrenched in their positions for years, due in large part to name recognition that past challengers have not been able to overcome.  But in 2012 they could be as vulnerable as they have ever been.

In 2011 Commissioner Price became the target of an ongoing FBI investigation, though no indictments have been handed down. It’s hard to predict how voters will view the commissioner’s legal troubles.  History shows that JWP’s constituents are very forgiving.

Congresswoman Johnson hit a speed bump in 2010 when it was revealed that four of her relatives and a top aide’s two children received scholarship money from the Congressional Black Caucus.  The Congresswoman has since repaid the scholarship money, but it remains to be seen if this issue will linger in the minds of voters.

In either case, the question becomes will voters be compelled to make a change in 2012?  Neither incumbent has embraced the role of mentor during their tenure.  No one has been “groomed” to step into these positions. However, for the first time there appears to be formidable opponents in each race.

For Commissioner Price, Betty Culbreath is a familiar foe having worked for the Commissioner from 1985-1991. Ms. Culbreath touts herself as having a “Record of Making a Difference” and has been quoted as referring to Commissioner Price’s effectiveness as “an illusion.”

Ms. Culbreath is a seasoned veteran and understands how to navigate the treacherous political waters in Dallas County. On the other hand, challenger Sylvia Rhodes Bradley (SRB) has virtually no political experience. She declared that she would run as an independent, then as a Democrat, now as an independent once again.  SRB will have an uphill battle.  The same can be said for Rev. Micah Phillips.

Challengers for the U.S. House District 30 seat mirror those in the County Commissioners race.  Congresswoman Johnson will have to fend off Barbara Mallory Caraway, another seasoned political veteran, who spent 8 years on the Dallas City Council and most recently served in the Texas House of Representatives District 110.

Attorney Taj Clayton faces a daunting task and at the end of the day his lack of experience may work against him. But his implementation of an effective Social Media and fundraising strategy could make things interesting.

In the end, the outcomes of both of these races will be decided by Southern Dallas voters.  Commissioner Price and Congresswoman Johnson have held a stronghold in Southern Dallas that no one has been able to break.

They have also both benefited from voter apathy as their districts are known for low turnouts at the polls.  Now more than ever the voting savvy of Southern Dallas voters will be on display.

Will residents of Southern Dallas be able to move past name recognition and toward analyzing the effectiveness of the incumbents?  Is Southern Dallas ready to usher in a change?  In the words of the great Richard Pryor, we will see.

Michael Hubbard is a freelance writer and blogger.  A native of Dallas, TX, he is a proud graduate of James Madison High School.  Michael brings a unique, hometown perspective to his political and social commentary.  You can follow his opinions atmikeondallas.blogspot.com, and Mike can be reached at Mhubbard23@aol.com.